- Turkey: Istanbul mayor, 400 other political prisoners go on (show) trial
Source: ABC News
“Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu went on trial on Monday with more than 400 other defendants accused of widespread corruption in a case critics see as a politically motivated move against Turkey’s opposition. Imamoglu, who has been behind bars for nearly a year, is the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ’s 23-year rule. He was elected as the main opposition party’s candidate for an election due in 2028 just days after he was detained. The hearing began in a tense atmosphere, with Imamoglu asking to speak and the panel of judges refusing the request, Halk TV news channel and other media reported. The judges accused Imamoglu of disrupting the proceedings, and then left the courtroom. The trial was adjourned until the afternoon. Most of the 402 defendants worked for the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, headed by Imamoglu since 2019. Many are elected officials from the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, while journalists are also among the accused.” (03/09/26)
- Country Joe McDonald, 1942-2026
Source: United Press International
“Country Joe McDonald, who formerly helmed Country Joe and the Fish, died Saturday. He was 84. The band announced the music artist’s death in Berkeley, Calif. on Facebook Sunday. The cause was listed as Parkinson’s Disease complications. … McDonald’s psychedelic rock band took to the stage before some 400,000 during Woodstock, The New York Times reported, performing ‘I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die Rag,’ which criticized the Vietnam War. … McDonald ultimately branched off on his own, launching his solo career with Thinking of Woodie Guthrie.” (03/09/26)
https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2026/03/09/obit-country-joe-mcdonald/2901773058567/
- Colombia: Leftist bloc dominates divided congress in legislative polls
Source: United Press International
“Preliminary results in Colombia’s legislative elections on Sunday showed President Gustavo Petro’s left-wing bloc maintaining its status as a dominant force, but with congress continuing to be divided. The results offered a glimmer of hope that Petro’s party may contend against the resurgent right in the May 31 presidential vote, which is projected to head to a runoff in June. Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, is barred by law from running for re-election and had been eying to push through reforms ahead of his term running out. While the makeup of the lower chamber remained uncertain, Petro’s leftist coalition was expected to be among the biggest, while in the Senate it was expected to be the largest.” (03/09/26)
- NM: Brothers of Epstein Accuser Virginia Giuffre Visit Ranch, Demand Unredacted Documents
Source: US News & World Report
“Two brothers of one of Jeffrey Epstein’s most prominent accusers visited the sex offender’s former New Mexico ranch on Sunday for the first time to demand the Trump administration release unredacted documents to reveal the identities of men their late sister alleged sexually abused her at the property. With Epstein’s hacienda-style mansion in the background, the brothers of Virginia Giuffre, who took her own life in April, joined hundreds of protesters at a roadside rally to mark international women’s day near the gate of the ranch located 30 miles (48 km) south of state capital Santa Fe. Giuffre’s brother Sky Roberts, 37, called on the U.S. Department of Justice to release documents showing, among other things, names of visitors to Epstein’s Zorro Ranch where he and his acquaintances are accused of sexually abusing women and girls.” (03/08/26)
- Bangladesh: Regime shuts universities, limits fuel sale as Iran war causes shortage
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“Bangladesh has closed universities and launched fuel rationing amid a worsening energy crisis linked to the conflict in the Middle East. Authorities shut all public and private universities across the country from Monday, bringing forward the Eid al-Fitr holidays as part of emergency measures to conserve electricity and fuel. Officials said the move will not only reduce electricity consumption but also ease traffic congestion, which leads to fuel wastage. They said the university campuses consume large amounts of electricity for residential halls, classrooms, laboratories and air conditioning, and the early closure would help ease pressure on the country’s strained power system.” (03/09/26)
- Trump’s Political Strategy on Iran Is Brilliant
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger“Political commentators are saying that President Trump has made a big political mistake by promoting many justifications for his war on Iran. … I say that President Trump showed political brilliance in coming up with an extremely large number of justifications for his war. … it gives his MAGA supporters a justification that is certain to satisfy all of them. In other words, if he had come up with only one or two justifications, there is a good possibility that a large percentage of MAGA men would not find them to be persuasive. Oh, to be sure, they would still be supportive, given their blind, loyal, patriotic, subservient, and obsequious support of whatever Trump says or does, but it might not be as enthusiastic as Trump would like it.” (03/09/26)
https://www.fff.org/2026/03/09/trumps-political-strategy-on-iran-is-brilliant/
- There is No Truth in This
Source: Underthrow
by Max Borders“William Tecumseh Sherman said, ‘War is hell.’ And he was right, though I can’t remember if he said that before or after torching everything he could on his march to the sea. Of the latest military adventure, enlightened commenters sit in their easy chairs and slap cheap bumper-sticker assessments on the Web for all the world to see. They baptize themselves in their own rectitude, having neither dodged a bullet in Fallujah nor watched a buddy’s legs get blown off by a roadside IED. Nor have they had to live a life of conformity forced by zealots pretending to believe in a religion they never converted to. They never had to be beaten and raped for showing their hair, or singing an ancient song, or dancing an ancient dance.” (03/09/26)
- The Children’s Iran War
Source: The American Conservative
by Ben Sixsmith“A long-running theme in the right-wing critique of progressive politics in the 2010s was mockery of its reliance on fantasy fiction. Left-leaning commentators appeared to have been trapped within the reference points of the novels of their childhood. Harry Potter was especially prominent in left-wing arguments. … we critics of ‘social justice’ activism found this discourse entertaining. We mocked its Manichaean vision of the world, in which everyone was either a goodie or a baddie. We made fun of its at least implicit reliance on magic. ‘Read another book’ was a popular jibe. This was more than legitimate. Still, as the American-Israeli war against Iran continues, I can’t help feeling that some people on the right were laughing without thinking. Now, some right-wing figures seem to be viewing the world through the lens of childish fiction. Prowar rhetoric is seething with cheap comparisons to popular culture.” (03/09/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/the-childrens-iran-war/
- American Gerontocracy
Source: Law & Liberty
by Aidan Grogan“America’s Boomers have established a bipartisan gerontocracy — a political and economic system under the leadership of the elderly. They take care of their own and make younger Americans foot the bill for their longer and more luxurious retirements. It’s obviously unfair, but no one on either side of the political aisle seems inclined to do anything about it. The federal government has run a budget deficit for 24 consecutive years as the gerontocracy tightened its grip on power. It’s particularly worrisome given that the political influence of senior citizens is likely to grow as the population ages, even as the economics of America’s gerontocracy become more and more unsustainable.” (03/09/26)
- Reflections on Four Decades of Teaching ECON 101
Source: The Daily Economy
by Donald J Boudreaux“My ECON 101 course is taught as if it’s the only economic course my students will ever take. Unlike many professors, I do not teach Principles of Microeconomics to prepare my students for Intermediate Microeconomics, which is the next course up in the curriculum. Some such preparation occurs, I’m pleased to report, but that’s all incidental. My chief goal is to inject my students with the rudiments of the economic way of thinking in order to inoculate them against the most virulent fallacies that are likely to try to infect their minds as they go through life.” (03/09/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/reflections-on-four-decades-of-teaching-econ-101/
- Will the Dollar be a Casualty of the Iran War?
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
by Ron Paul“The costs of this war will put added pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low and increase its purchase of Treasury bonds in order to monetize the federal debt. The pressure on the Fed will also increase as other countries reduce their purchase of US debt. These reductions will be motivated by concerns over the economic instability caused by the US government’s out of control spending and by resentment over the US government’s hyper-interventionist foreign policy. These factors could also accelerate the increasing rejection of the dollar’s world reserve currency status. A loss of the reserve currency status will cause a dollar crisis, leading to an economic crash worse than the Great Depression.” (03/09/26)
http://www.ronpaullibertyreport.com/archives/will-the-dollar-be-a-casualty-of-the-iran-war
- Cruising to Dubai
Source: Bet On It
by Bryan Caplan“When Americans initially hear the facts about the Emirates, most are incredulous. How can anywhere be 88% foreign-born yet remain a country? Isn’t ‘guest worker’ just a euphemism for ‘slave?’ But once you see the UAE with your own eyes, it’s hard not to scoff at these naive complaints. The UAE is totally a country, and no one buys plane tickets to become a slave. After Americans spend time in the UAE, their most sensible remaining critique is simply: ‘This immigration system works fine over in the Middle East. Maybe better than fine. But the American people would never tolerate the extreme inequality.’ … But are Americans really such egalitarian pearl clutchers?” (03/09/26)
- A Second Vietnam War? Hanoi Waits and Prepares
Source: Libertarian Institute
by José Niño“On the surface, everything between Vietnam and the United States looked better than it ever had. In September 2023, President Joe Biden and General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, elevating relations to their highest diplomatic tier. American officials toasted prosperity. Vietnamese leaders smiled for cameras. The messaging suggested a new chapter in a relationship once defined by napalm and body counts. Then, in early February 2026, a very different story emerged from behind the curtain.” (03/09/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/a-second-vietnam-war-hanoi-waits-and-prepares
- Why Healthcare Is So Expensive in America, and What to Do About It
Source: Cato Institute
by Veronique de Rugy“America’s healthcare system consistently ranks as the most expensive in the developed world. It’s not, as some politicians claim, expensive because markets have failed. It’s expensive because the market has been repeatedly blocked from succeeding. Until we’re honest about that, any potential reforms will only address symptoms while ignoring the disease. The healthcare market is hindered in many ways, but the core structural problem is simple: The person receiving care is almost never the person actually paying for it.” (03/09/26)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/why-healthcare-so-expensive-america-what-do-about-it
- 250 Years Later, The Wealth of Nations Still Has Lessons To Offer the Political Class
Source: Reason
by JD Tuccille“Few books can be said to have withstood the test of time 250 years later, but Adam Smith’s An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (usually shortened to The Wealth of Nations), published for the first time in 1776, certainly has. At a time when even the governments of nominally free countries once again dabble with guiding economies, and the president of the United States rails against trade as if it’s a team sport where some countries are winners and others are losers, Smith’s book reminds us that unfettered societies are both good and productive, and that free trade produces the best outcomes for all.” (03/09/26)
- The Real Threat Is Artificial Credit, Not Artificial Intelligence
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by George Ford Smith“Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming one of the most capital-intensive industries in history. Consider: Semiconductor fabrication plants cost tens of billions of dollars. Massive data centers consume extraordinary amounts of electricity, sending power bills soaring. Specialized engineering talent commands premium wages. (Although the median salary for an AI professional is $160K annually, the top 1 percent of AI researchers receive compensation packages exceeding $1 million). Global supply chains must coordinate rare materials, precision manufacturing, and complex infrastructure. Yet discussions about artificial intelligence almost never address the most important economic variable shaping its development: money. From an Austrian perspective, the future of artificial intelligence ties directly to the monetary system that finances it. Whether AI produces sustainable prosperity or another boom-bust cycle depends less on algorithms than on interest rates.” (03/09/26)
https://mises.org/mises-wire/real-threat-artificial-credit-not-artificial-intelligence
- US and Iran Were Close to a Deal Before Trump Chose War
Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Snider“Iran has an ‘inalienable right’ to enrich uranium for civilian use, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, told the U.S. delegation with frustration in the final round of talks before the bombs started to fall on Iran. And the U.S. has an ‘inalienable right’ to stop you, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff answered with hubris. Araghchi is right, and Witkoff is wrong. The U.S. and its partners have presented the public with a war that was caused by Iran’s refusal to compromise on its civilian nuclear program; however, as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran has ‘the inalienable right to a civilian program that uses nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.'” (03/09/26)
- The myth of the billionaire wealth tax
Source: Washington Post
by Megan McArdle“The problem with government spending is that you have to pay for it. New programs often poll well when you tell people about the benefits. Mention raising taxes, however, and it’s a whole different story. But what if you didn’t have to tax reluctant voters to fund your big ideas? I mean, Elon Musk is sitting on somewhere north of $670 billion. If the government took just 5 percent of that, it would have almost $34 billion to spend on health care and child care and green energy, right? And there are almost a thousand other billionaires in the country, so pass that wealth tax and warm up the money cannons! If only it were so easy. … wealth taxes have been tried over and over, and most countries that adopted them eventually abandoned the idea, finding that such taxes were difficult to administer, caused capital flight and raised little revenue.” (03/08/26)
- Apocalypse Soon? War on Iran Heralds Worse to Come.
Source: The Realist Review
by Martin Sieff“One did not have to be Michel de Nostradamus to anticipate that this was going to happen. Nostradamus repeatedly warned about the immeasurable catastrophes that would flow from provoking the Iranian people into a wild, once-in-two-millennia jihad against the West. Not that such an eventuality was ever going to happen unless some Western leaders were stupid enough to martyr an Iranian Shiite leader during the holy month of Ramadan. Great thinking, guys.” (03/08/26)
https://therealistreview.substack.com/p/apocalypse-soon-war-on-iran-heralds
- Immigrants reduce America’s deficit. Congress should take notice.
Source: Orange County Register
by David Bier“Amid ongoing congressional debates—culminating, of course, in a partial shutdown—over Trump’s mass deportation agenda, one fact in particular should capture both Democrats’ and Republicans’ attention: immigrants provide an enormous boost to the country’s long-term economic and fiscal health, reducing our massive deficit by a third.” (03/08/26)
- Gracearchy with Jim Babka, episode 155
Source: Gracearchy with Jim Babka
“The MAGA Case for Open Immigration by Ammon Bundy.” (03/09/26)
- The Evil Within, part 4
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
“Foreign Interventionism.” (03/09/26)
- EconTalk, 03/09/26
Source: EconTalk
“How We Tamed Ourselves and Invented Good and Evil (with Hanno Sauer).” (03/09/26)
https://www.econtalk.org/how-we-tamed-ourselves-and-invented-good-and-evil-with-hanno-sauer/
- TechTank, season 5, episode 38
Source: Brookings Institution
“Going back to the moon.” (03/09/26)
https://shows.acast.com/tech-tank/episodes/going-back-to-the-moon
- Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 03/09/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“Iran Chooses Khamenei’s Son as New Leader, Israeli Strikes Kill 394 in Lebanon in One Week, and More.” (03/09/26)
- LPALive, episode 64
- Bulwark Takes, 03/08/26
Source: The Bulwark
“The GOP Screamed About Debt — Now They’re Burning $2B a Day.” (03/08/26)